Archive of Finished Books
for 2009
(50 books total)
| Flora Segunda by Ysabeau S. Wilce This book was okay. I never really felt attached to Flora so I didn't care as much what was happening to her. But I'm not sure if this was the fault of the book or my own frame of mind at the moment (focused on job search). [1/9/09] |
| Writing Magic by Gail Carson Levine [BookCrossing] I didn't really learn anything new about writing in this book as I've read many other writing books in the past. But I do think that for someone (especially a young person) just starting out with getting serious about writing, this would be a really great book. Levine uses a conversational style in the book and also provides encouragement and writing exercises. So I'd recommend it as a book for beginning writers. [1/10/09] |
| Reader and Raelynx by Sharon Shinn (audiobook) I have dearly loved these characters and so it is sad that this is the last book featuring them (there is at least one more book featuring a peripheral character from this book), but it was definitely a fantastic finale. [1/10/09] |
| Fortune and Fate by Sharon Shinn (audiobook) This book was set up as a companion to the series I've been reading - about one of the side characters rather than the main six who had been in the other books. At first I was a little disappointed because I wanted to read more about the original six. But I was delighted to see quite a bit about those characters in this book, with entire chapters devoted to them. And I was equally delighted to get to know Wen as I really liked her. So I personally think this book shouldn't be marketed as a "side" tale because it really does continue with what happened after the other four books and I'm happy that I read it. [1/31/09] |
| Dragonhaven by Robin McKinley I was not wowed by this book. The beginning was confusing and if it had not been for the description on the dust jacket, I would have had absolutely no idea what was going on. Even with the description, I was lost for a while. I also felt that the first 2/3 of the book dragged on for too long with a little more detail than necessary. Then it suddenly shifted and time went by extremely quickly with very few details. It almost seemed as if the author realized the story was taking too long and decided to speed things up instead of editing the first part to even out the story a little more. I think the story idea was decent, but I never really felt like I had to grab the book and continue reading right away (which is one reason it took me so long to finish it). [2/11/09] |
| Living with the Dead by Kelley Armstrong (audiobook) Hope is probably my least favorite of the main characters, but that's not to say that I don't like her or this book. I would just prefer to get a story about Elena or Paige. But once I got beyond that, the story was quite good with a lot of intertwining characters/storylines. [2/15/09] |
| Artemis Fowl: The Time Paradox by Eoin Colfer I really have enjoyed all of the Artemis Fowl books, and this was no exception. But I have to admit that the paradoxes of time travel were a little difficult to follow at times. [2/21/09] |
| Playing with Fire by Katie MacAlister I loved being back in this world, even if the POV has changed from Aisling and Jim to a new character. I found myself really wanting to get back to the book to find out what happens. And it ends on quite the cliffhanger, so I'm happy to have the second book here ready to read! [2/28/09] |
| Up in Smoke by Katie MacAlister Another fun romp with the dragons. It does end on a cliffhanger, so I'm hoping that I get the next book fairly soon! [3/15/09] |
| Furies of Calderon by Jim Butcher (audiobook) I'm finally getting back to this series and as it was quite a while back that I read this book (almost exactly 2 years ago), I read it again and finished it today. [3/15/09] |
| Kitty and the Dead Man's Hand by Carrie Vaughn I've enjoyed reading about Kitty from the very beginning and her story just keeps getting better and better. I loved this one. [3/19/09] |
| Kitty Raises Hell by Carrie Vaughn Loved this book which kept me on the edge of my seat wondering when Kitty would figure things out and hoping that she would be able to do so before too many people got hurt. [4/5/09] |
| White Witch, Black Curse by Kim Harrison I've always enjoyed each book in this series, but at first I wasn't entirely sure about this one. Not that I wasn't enjoying it, but it seemed like there were too many disparate strands of plot and I didn't understand how they all tied together. I thought the book didn't really have a clear focus. But in the end, all of the plots did twine together and it became much more clear about their connection. [4/25/09] |
| Academ's Fury by Jim Butcher (audiobook) This book takes place two years after the previous book and Tavi has grown up in many ways (although not completely), so it was really interesting to see him in his new role. I'm really enjoying how this series is progressing so far. [4/25/09] |
| Turn Coat by Jim Butcher Many threads from past books come together in this book which was really neat, but it's very much a dark story. I think that Butcher has 20 books planned so it makes sense that we're in the middle of the entire story which is always usually the darkest. So there were wonderful moments (I love Mouse!) and some things I wanted that didn't occur (more Bob!) but I'm looking forward to starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel for Harry. He deserves to have something really wonderful happen to him. [5/5/09] |
| Vampire, Interrupted by Lynsay Sands Because Marguerite is the matriarch of the Argeneau clan, I've been used to seeing her in that role rather than as in this book as the main heroine. I have to admit that it was a little difficult reconciling these two different views of her. But once I was able to get mostly past that, I thought the book was pretty good. There were some plot twists that were nice and the story itself was different from the usual, so that was good. [5/16/09] |
| The Rogue Hunter by Lynsay Sands I miss seeing the Argeneaus or even really hearing about any of them, but I did like these characters, so that was okay. The ending was a little different from the other books in the series, which is nice but not quite as happy as it could be. It'll be interesting to see how it plays out in future books. [5/18/09] |
| Cursor's Fury by Jim Butcher (audiobook) Although most of the plot is fairly predictable, I'm really enjoying this story and these characters. I'm looking forward to seeing what happens to Tavi in future books. [5/19/09] |
| The Immortal Hunter by Lynsay Sands This book pretty much continued on very shortly after the previous book. I still miss the Argeneaus although a couple of them made a brief appearance. So I enjoyed the book but it definitely wasn't my most favorite of the series. [5/21/09] |
| Dead and Gone by Charlaine Harris In some ways I felt that there was too much going on all at once. But most of it did connect together in the end. It just seems that Sookie often has just way too much to deal with at one time. But I very much enjoyed getting back into this world, even if I didn't always like every event (death) that happened. [5/26/09] |
| Captain's Fury by Jim Butcher (audiobook) Some of the story continues to be predictable (as I noted for the previous book), but it's still a story with great characters that I enjoy reading about. It will be interesting to see what happens next. [6/4/09] |
| The
Last Kingdom by Bernard Cornwell Overall this was solid historical fiction. It took me a little while to actually like Uhtred, and he'll still never be one of my favorite characters, but he is a complex character and there's a lot more to him that just what appears on the surface, so I am intrigued enough to want to keep reading about him. [6/6/09] |
| Princep's Fury by Jim Butcher (audiobook) There was a lot of description of fighting in this book, which isn't what I'm as interested in. But between the fighting, there were some really great scenes and some excellent character development. Things look bleak for our characters, but I have every confidence that Tavi will find a way to save them in the next book. [6/11/09] |
| Underground by Kat Richardson Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I did find the side story about Quinton's past a little distracting because it didn't seem to fit into the overall arch of this story. But perhaps it was included to help set up something that will happen in the next book, so I'll hold off on my judgment until then. But definitely a series I'll continue to read and enjoy. [6/14/09] |
| The Temptation of the Night Jasmine by Lauren Willig (audiobook) I was a little disappointed in this addition to the series. It seemed more of a standalone and didn't really contribute that much to the overall storyline. Also, the spy stuff seemed more of a sideline rather than a main part of the story. It was still a good read, but definitely not the best of the series. [6/17/09] |
| Turnabout by Margaret Peterson Haddix [BookCrossing] I enjoyed the premise of this book but the way the story was written was a bit of a letdown. There really wasn't all that much conflict and only really minimal character development. It actually seemed a bit flat to be honest. [6/19/09] |
| The Shadow Queen by Anne Bishop (audiobook) It was nice to get back to this world and I enjoyed getting to see it from a different point of view as well as getting to find out what happened to all of my favorite characters from previous books. [6/20/09] |
| The Awakening by Kelley Armstrong I really enjoyed this story and cannot wait to see what happens in the next book. I'd also really love to see the characters from the Women of the Otherworld series cross over into some of this story. Great book that I couldn't put down. [6/20/09] |
| General Winston's Daughter by Sharon Shinn At first, I wasn't sure if I was going to like this book, but I've really liked other books by this author, so I decided to give it a chance. And am I glad I did! It was a really wonderful book about a young girl who is just on the verge of becoming an adult (so a coming-of-age story) who is realizing that the world is not as simple as she used to think it was. She learns quite a lot throughout the book, lessons of joy and of great sadness. But in the end, I think her life is going to be much better than if she had remained sheltered and unaware of the world. A really lovely book. [6/22/09] |
| Undead and Unwelcome by MaryJanice Davidson This one was better than some of the past stories but it really lacked a lot of substance (not that I am expecting much substance from this book). I did like getting a bit from Marc's point of view. But basically, it felt like a short story that was given a little padding to make it a novel. It just needed more of something. [6/27/09] |
| The
Apothecary Rose by Candace M. Robb [BookCrossing] My first foray into the world of Owen Archer definitely will not be my last. I enjoyed the murder mystery set in the medieval time period. [7/5/09] |
| People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks I really liked this book quite a lot. I enjoyed getting to see the history of the manuscript. As someone who has an interest in manuscripts, it really shows how precarious it is for a manuscript to survive for so long. [7/11/09] |
| M Is for Magic by Neil Gaiman I enjoyed all of the stories in this book although sometimes the endings felt a little abrupt. I think my favorite was the old woman who found the Holy Grail at Oxfam. [7/15/09] |
| Pride by Rachel Vincent There was quite a lot that happened in this book to keep me on the edge of my seat. The tension between Faythe and Marc is pretty intense, even though I think both of them are being stupid and stubborn. I'm really enjoying this series. [7/22/09] |
| Dragon Keeper by Robin Hobb The first of two books and I really with the second was already available because this book was just getting to how everything fit together and the real action when it ended. With a lot of new characters, the setup was appreciated to get to know these people and their world (although the Rain Wilds was brought up in another trilogy). Robin Hobb is definitely back on solid ground with this book. [8/4/09] |
| Julie & Julia by Julie Powell I went to see the movie and really enjoyed it so I thought I'd try the book. It was also quite enjoyable, and it was nice to read something a little bit different from my usual fare for a while. But I really don't know how they ate some of the things she cooked (brains??) much less cooked them! [8/20/09] |
| Men of the Otherworld by Kelley Armstrong I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Although I love all of the women, it was really wonderful to get some of the men's stories, especially Clay. It really helped to flesh out Clay and Jeremy's characters as well as the world itself. This is definitely one of my favorite series. [8/23/09] |
| Fragile Things by Neil Gaiman As with most books of short stories, there were some that I really enjoyed and some that were just so-so. (A few of them were also in M is for Magic so I skipped over those this time.) I don't know that any of the stories jumped out at me as being excellent and amazing. There were some very good ones, although now I can't remember specifics as I read these stories over a fairly lengthy period of time (a month and a half). [9/1/09] |
| Agincourt by Bernard Cornwell Excellent historical fiction. And the battle scenes were extremely well written. [10/5/09] |
| Prey by Rachel Vincent (audiobook) The political manouvering is getting quite complex, but that's a good background for the story to play itself against. Sadly, not everyone makes it through this book safely, but when a war is on the horizon, the stakes are higher and so the events make the book seem more "realistic." [10/11/09] |
| Cape Storm by Rachel Caine I've been through quite a few adventures with Joanne throughout this series. She's been through a lot - more than one person truly believably could go through. And in this book it's like she goes through everything she'd already been through previously and then some. But maybe the ending will finally provide her with some peace and some happiness in her life. [10/13/09] |
| Fledgling by Octavia E. Butler This was a rather fascinating story about identity and family and belonging. [10/27/09] |
| The
Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett This was a fun Discworld jaunt, although I've liked other Discworld books better. [11/1/09] |
| Soul
Music by Terry Pratchett The only negative about this book was that there wasn't enough Death in it. But otherwise, I really enjoyed it. [11/14/09] |
| Wyrd
Sisters by Terry Pratchett I loved seeing some of the connections that were made to Macbeth, as well as some other Shakespeare plays. I think the ending was a bit rushed, but it was a fun read overall. [11/27/09] |
| Grave Secret by Charlaine Harris This book was really hard to put down. The story is a bit convoluted (and we finally get to find out what happened to Cameron!) but everything does tie together and make sense in the end. A really enjoyable book. [11/28/09] |
| The Van Alen Legacy by Melissa de la Cruz I think I remember being a bit lost in the last book and not completely understanding what was going on. This one was better and explained things more clearly. Even so, I didn't feel incredibly compelled to continue reading the book; I definitely wanted to finish it but it wasn't one that I just had to pick up right away and keep reading. [12/1/09] |
| Once Dead, Twice Shy by Kim Harrison This was a decent young adult book. There were parts that were a little confusing although most of it made sense by the end of the book. I'd read more of this series if/when the books come into my hands, but I don't know that I'll actively seek them out (like I do with Harrison's Rachel Morgan series). [12/4/09] |
| First Lord's Fury by Jim Butcher (audiobook) Altogether, this was a fairly good conclusion (or what I'm assuming is the conclusion) to this series. I can't help feeling that some of the ending was a bit rushed and that some of the details in the middle could have been condensed. But I really enjoyed this series a lot. [12/6/09] |
| Superfreakonomics by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner (audiobook) I really enjoyed this book and a lot of what these authors have to say makes quite a bit of sense. I do think that I enjoyed the first book a little more as far as the specific examples, but this one gave me quite a bit to think about, especially with regard to how people react regarding incentives. [12/11/09] |
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